But inside the Indianapolis Colts' locker room Sunday, the topic of conversation centered not on the 26-10 AFC wild-card victory against the Cincinnati Bengals. Instead, eyes already were fixed on what lies ahead.

Next stop: Denver.

Hello, Peyton Manning.

It's a storyline that never gets old. Manning, maybe the greatest Colt ever, playing his former team.

They've met before. Twice, in fact. But they've never played on a bigger stage or with more on the line. The winner earns a trip to the AFC Championship Game, one step closer to the Super Bowl.

"You're going against a Hall of Famer," defensive tackle Ricky Jean Francois said. "You're going against somebody who has mastered the game, knows all the coverages, all the tendencies. We're just going to line up and see if he can (beat Denver). We already know Peyton is going to get his yards, Peyton is going to make his plays. But if we don't let him sit in that pocket and we don't let him move around, we might have us a ballgame.

"It's surely going to be a game to watch."

The Colts will want to put on a better showing than they did in their season opener at Denver. They lost 31-24 that September night at Invesco Field, but a series of forced and unforced errors by the Colts put them in an early 24-7 hole from which they could not emerge.

Perhaps they should bring with them some of the things that proved successful against the Bengals on Sunday.

The list includes a stiff run defense, solid protection from an embattled offensive line, a running game that was, at worst, adequate, and great quarterback play from Andrew Luck (31 of 44, 376 yards).

Those are elements that will serve a team well in the postseason, even one that was as inconsistent as the Colts recently.

With Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton missing two of his most potent weapons — receiver A.J. Green and tight end Jermaine Gresham — Cincinnati was a shell of itself and no match for the Colts.

Dalton completed just 18 of his 35 passes for 155 yards, the Colts defense forcing him to settle for check-down throws to backs and tight ends. (Cincinnati receivers accounted for three catches and 31 yards.) He was sacked three times.

"We knew if we got Andy Dalton off his spot, we knew we could rattle him," Jean Francois said. "And the same thing we did this week, we must carry it over to next week. ."

The only thing that prevented Sunday's game from becoming a blowout was the Colts' periodic lack of execution.

Receiver T.Y. Hilton dropping three passes comes to mind. Tight end Dwayne Allen's pair of false starts certainly didn't help. Running back Boom Herron's two fumbles are another example. And the red-zone failures that highlighted Sunday's game — kicker Adam Vinatieri had four field goals — will likely prove costlier.

But, all told, the Colts moved the ball effortlessly — their 482 total yards was third-most in their postseason history.

Is that good enough to beat the 12-4 Broncos? On their home field? In the playoffs?

We're about to find out.

"We have a nasty taste in our mouths," linebacker D'Qwell Jackson said, referencing the earlier loss at Denver. "They handled us. We didn't play our best game at all. That's why I think a lot of guys have been quietly waiting for this opportunity.